Me. Just literate.

I love to read…in theory. As a child, I enjoyed the occasional story, especially if there were pictures involved (I like art, ok?). Then, my 4th grade teacher had an inspired idea. “I should make my students read 30 books in one year!” Brilliant, Miss C…Ch…gah! I can’t remember her name. I’m officially old. Anyways, my teacher had discovered the most effective way to suck the fun out of reading for a child.

It wasn’t until high school that Jane Austen helped me rediscover the joy of delving into a story. I read all I could: Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, Eight Cousins, Harry Potter, etc. And then I went to Bible college. And that’s where I discovered the most effective way to suck the fun out of reading. Commentaries. I love Jesus. I love the Bible. I very much dislike commentaries. And I almost failed a class because of my stubborn refusal to do all the reading the crazy man assigned (and by crazy I mean brilliant…the man was just wicked smart…probably because he read all that stuff he assigned). Thankfully, I aced the final exam.

All of this to say – I haven’t read a book in a really really long time. Other than Twilight, but that’s not literature. That’s girl porn.

And so, this week I will focus on becoming more well-read. Here’s the plan of attack:

1. Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom on audio – The author (yes…the man himself) is coming to speak at my church in two weeks, so I figure it’s a good idea to read the book. Also, I’m producing a video for the week afterwards based on excerpts from the book. I consider this research. And I have it on audio, so I can listen in my car.

2. News – Every day I will read three articles from a reputable news source. Entertainment news will be considered extra-curricular.

3. The Me I Want To Be by John Ortberg – I got this book a few weeks ago and it is fast collecting dust on my shelf. I will start it and read a little each day.

4. Don’t push it – I will not force myself to read more than I want to. Otherwise, I’ve turned into my 4th grade teacher. The point is to rekindle my relationship with the written word. Not resurrect the genuine hatred I’ve hidden in my heart for so long.

Week 2 starts tomorrow. Oh…wait. No, that’s ok. Tomorrow’s legit in this case. Tomorrow!